The present invention relates to asset management systems and, in particular, systems for providing a management architecture accessible from remote Internet-compliant browsers to provide real-time functions relating to the access, configuration and administration of various features associated with fuel dispensers and other forecourt devices including, but not limited to, card authorization terminals, video/merchandising displays, advertising, and price posting signs, in addition to point-of-sale (POS) devices at any particular store location and related inventory management systems.
Historically, there has never been an organized system for remotely managing various aspects of a fueling site or convenience store in both an efficient and comprehensive manner. In particular, viewing real-time status and configuration information of convenience store and fueling station devices has always been an operation done locally at a particular site. These functions, such as pricing and advertising, have been handled separately on a customer's proprietary network, but complete store management functionality has never been available. Normally, most management procedures are manual and very costly. Software updates require certified technicians to visit the site, load the software and test its functionality.
Equipment failures often go unnoticed until the operator's business is affected due to unhappy customers. The operator will then call the distributor and report the error, often with very sketchy and unhelpful details. The certified technician then has to visit the site to troubleshoot the unit before being able to assess the problem and acquire the appropriate parts which may require a second costly visit. In short, requiring the touch of a qualified technician is both expensive and time consuming. Furthermore, if a problem arises that causes the devices to be shut down, waiting for a technician to arrive to diagnose the nature of the problem and then make a return trip to repair the equipment results in additional lost sales and general customer dissatisfaction which, in the highly competitive fuel dispensing market, may lead to the permanent loss of a customer. Although various attempts have been made to provide technicians with information to diagnose the problem, information gathering has always been an expensive, manual process requiring qualified personnel to phone or visit the site to survey items such as equipment age, configurations and hardware and software versions.
Currently, Gilbarco and other dispenser manufacturers offer POS systems allowing remote, off-line viewing of inventory and sales data of a convenience store through a proprietary, third-party interface. This interface is costly and inconvenient because it requires dedicated applications and tools to access the interface. Furthermore, each system is different and requires technicians from the manufacturer to make any changes to the system in order to upgrade, reconfigure or test the system. Thus, there is a need for a uniform management system capable of accessing the various devices in a fueling environment to provide remote configurations, upgrades and real-time monitoring. There is a need for a capability that allows service contractors, equipment manufacturers and store management to access the various features and aspects of the system to view sales and inventory data, change prices, transmit software upgrades, access configuration information, and monitor operation and status of various devices from remote locations.
Earlier attempts at using the Internet to provide real-time functions were unsuccessful because monitoring live status of devices, particularly those on the forecourt, does not fit well into the orthodox world wide web architectures.